Bali volcano refugees haunted by Mt Agung

Memories of the last devastating eruption of Bali's Mount Agung in 1963 haunt the refugees forced to flee their homes this week.

The Indonesian mountain has been gushing black-grey columns of volcanic dust and steam since the weekend and glowing a dramatic red at night as lava wells in its crater.

On Monday, authorities ordered residents living near the volcano to evacuate the area immediately, warning that the first major eruption in 54 years could be "imminent". An 8-10 km exclusion zone was imposed around the summit.

The international airport has reopened and stranded tourists have begun trickling home, but the prospects for the 100,000 displaced locals remain grim.

They're scattered across the island in refugee camps more reminiscent of war zones than the tropical retreat Bali is famous for.

Nengah Sedeng says he was just seven years old when the volcano killed about 1100 people.

He's had to evacuate his home at Besakih on the slopes of Mt Agung to sleep in dilapidated classrooms in Bangli, about 20km south of the volcano.

Besakih is famous for its Hindu temple and he's praying his God will protect the religious site and his home.

Komang Hendra fled the same village and is also holed up in the refugee camp.

His home burned down eight months ago and he had only just finished building another six days before the volcano rumbled and forced his family to evacuate.

"That's why every night my wife has been crying," he told AAP.

Mr Hendra's four-year-old daughter, Putu, is an early victim of the roaring Mt Agung.

He said the volcanic ash has wreaked havoc on her asthma and forced her to hospital every week for the past month.

Figures from the airport showed 23 flights, mostly domestic, carried about 1600 passengers out on Wednesday. Inbound flights included a Singapore Airlines jet with only two passengers.

The volcano was erupting less furiously on Thursday. The Disaster Mitigation Agency said the ash plume was rising about 2000 metres above the crater, about half its previous height. As ash has drifted away from the mountain, it has reached heights of 7600 metres, posing a threat to aircraft.

Despite the all-clear for Bali's airport, flights are unlikely to return to normal levels any time soon and a change in the direction of the ash or a new more powerful eruption could force the airport's closure again.